


I'll Still Ship It

by fmljustlex



Category: 13 Reasons Why (TV)
Genre: Based on a Tumblr Post, I Blame Tumblr, M/M, Originally Posted on Tumblr, Shipping, Tumblr Ask Box Fic, Zach ships them, also monty, it's zach shipping his otp, that's the fic, they all ship it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-21
Updated: 2017-08-21
Packaged: 2018-12-18 04:50:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,028
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11867100
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fmljustlex/pseuds/fmljustlex
Summary: He finds Monty before anyone else arrives, and smacks the back of his head.“Ow,” Monty whirls on him. “The fuck was that for?”Zach scowls at him. “The fuck do you think? You ruined my plan.” He was a little dubious about bringing Monty into it, but at this point he’s so fed up with those two he’ll try about anything.“What? What plan?”“To get Justin and Alex together, genius.”Monty stares at him. “You’re playing matchmaker?”Zach throws up his arms in exasperation. “Do you think they’d get there themselves if I didn’t?”Monty considers this for a moment, before slowing starting to nod. “Good point. I want in.”





	I'll Still Ship It

The thing that annoys Zach, is that it’s so obvious to him.

The way they always end up a little closer to each other than anybody else. The way they look at each other when they think no one else is looking. The way they touch, how they watch, the amount of worry and care.

But they haven’t actually done anything, and Zach’s had enough.

They’re all hanging around the corridors and Zach waits until Alex leaves before sidling up next to Justin.

He grins down at the other jock, propping himself against a locker. “So, Alex is pretty cool, huh?”

Justin looks up at him and shrugs. “Cool isn’t exactly the word I’d use to describe him.”

Zach senses opportunity. He stands up straight, forcing his voice to sound light, innocent. “What words would you use to describe him then?”

“I don’t know. Sarcastic asshole, for one.”

The words should be harsh, but he’s grinning and the tone comes off as fond. Zach stares at him. He’s preparing to pry a little more, about to ask another question when Alex returns and he stops.

He watches as Justin’s grin widens before it’s wiped away and they’re making snarky comments at each other, words annoyed but eyes twinkling. Zach wants to hit them. Or shove their heads together. Or lock them in a room until they figure their shit out and get together, already.

He starts to think.

~°~

When he makes his first attempt, they’re drunk.

They’re sprawled out across Monty’s couches, and Zach’s sober enough to get his brain to remember his plan and put the first idea into action. He walks into the room and spots Justin on the couch to the side, an empty space beside him. The only empty space in the room.

He looks behind him to see Alex still in the kitchen and makes a beeline for the spot.

He plops down next to Justin just as Alex comes in. The blonde looks around before his face twists in annoyance. Zach’s glad that right now, everyone thinks he’s drunker than he is.

While Alex is never more than tipsy, Justin actually is a little drunk and a little high, and it makes Zach think he’ll be a lot more welcome to this idea.

“Alex. Seat right here,” Zach informs him with a wide smile, tapping Justin’s knee.

Alex gives him a strange look but Justin doesn’t seem phased. Instead he looks at the younger boy with his own smile and opens his arms, beer bottle swaying dangerously between his fingers.

Just as Alex settles himself down with flushed cheeks, Justin moves his arm and the bottle slips from his hand.

Zach hears the smash and winces as Monty’s eyes widen. “Dude, that’s my mom’s carpet!”

Alex is on his feet again and Justin’s following, expression apologetic. “Fuck, sorry. It’ll come out. Alex knows how to do that shit, right, Standall?”

“You guys are my friends and my dad’s a cop. I can get it out,” Alex agrees.

Justin bends down to pick up the broken pieces with Monty as Alex walks out to the kitchen, and Zach slumps in his seat.

~°~

After they’d gotten over the bottle incident Zach had hoped everyone would retake their places, but Monty had taken the opportunity to kick everyone out. Except for Justin, who had stayed the night, meaning they were split as soon as Alex stepped out the door.

The next day they’re at school, Zach confronts him.

He finds Monty before anyone else arrives, and smacks the back of his head.

“Ow,” Monty whirls on him. “The fuck was that for?”

Zach scowls at him. “The fuck do you think? You ruined my plan.” He was a little dubious about bringing Monty into it, but at this point he’s so fed up with those two he’ll try about anything.

“What? What plan?”

“To get Justin and Alex together, genius.”

Monty stares at him. “You’re playing matchmaker?”

Zach throws up his arms in exasperation. “Do you think they’d get there themselves if I didn’t?”

Monty considers this for a moment, before slowing starting to nod. “Good point. I want in.”

It’s the smaller jock that comes up with the next plan. After gym, while Alex and Justin are in the showers, Zach and Monty make sure everyone’s left before they take their clothes. Monty explains the logic that this will leave the two in the locker room, alone, mostly naked (they decided to leave the underwear), and something was bound to happen. Zach didn’t have any better ideas to argue.

They wait outside for ten minutes, making sure to stay where they won’t be seen if the two come out.

But the two of them don’t. Instead, Justin emerges, fully clothed, with his bag hung over his shoulder.

Zach blinks, then smacks Monty again.

“Ow,” Monty whines. “How was I supposed to know he had spare clothes?”

Zach rolls his eyes. “It’s Justin. He keeps at least three changes of clothes in that bag. Idiot.”

“Well, he still had to get to his bag from the shower. It doesn’t mean nothing happened.”

It takes another five minutes for Alex to emerge, also fully clothed and with a pissed off look on his face. Zach lets out a sigh.

“Except, nothing happened.”

~°~

Zach blesses the world for Valentine’s Day. It’s the perfect chance for something to actually work, at least he hopes.

He knows neither of them would ever do what he does, but he makes the attempt anyway. He decides Justin isn’t a writer, but Alex plays music, and that’s enough for him to think that’s a good enough excuse.

He looks up some pick up lines and writes it on a sheet of a paper, signing it ‘A’ and tucking it into Justin’s bag when the boy doesn’t notice.

Unfortunately, when he does notice, Alex is sitting right next to him.

Justin reads the note silently then glances up at the blonde boy with hopeful eyes. Alex seems to sense the gaze and turns to look at him, brows raised. “What?” He sees the note in the jock’s hands and leans over to look at it.

Justin sits completely still as he does so, and Zach watches the scene unfold, sinking down in his seat.

Alex’s brow furrows. “Who’s ‘A’?”

Zach groans inwardly as Justin’s face falls. He shrugs, crumpling the note in his hand and stuffing it back into his bag. “Dunno. Doesn’t matter.”

~°~

It takes the two of them being sober and Zach being drunk.

He attempts to ignore his disappointment in the two of them with the help of a few bottles, because they’ve spent the whole fucking party on opposite ends of the room, and Zach just doesn’t understand.

He’s grumbling his annoyance under his breath when he staggers, and Justin’s there to catch him. “Whoa, man, how much did you drink?”

“Uhhhh more than you?” Zach slurs.

Justin rolls his eyes. “I didn’t drink anything.”

“Exactly.”

Justin heaves a sigh and attempts to lift his arm over his shoulder. Zach slings it behind his neck easily, almost toppling the shorter boy over as he leans on him. But he steadies them, and starts to guide Zach through the mass of people.

Zach stumbles along in silence, debating internally, pondering which way would be the best way to bring it up.

In the end, he just blurts, “Do you like Alex?”

Justin starts. His grip on Zach loosens and the taller jock almost falls, but he manages to catch them. “I-what?”

But Zach doesn’t even hear him. A blonde head has come into view in front of them and a wide smile takes over his face.

“Alllllleeex,” Zach sings happily, slinging his free arm over the boy’s thin shoulders, accidently knocking him in the back of the head.

Alex winces but catches Zach as he suddenly shifts his weight to him. “Woah, hey. You’re drunk.”

Zach’s grin widens.

“Very drunk,” Alex decides.

Zach hums, mind still working. “Justin’s taking care of me.”

“Yeah?” Alex gazes at the other jock, who’s still at Zach’s other side. “That’s good. He’s good at that.”

Justin doesn’t reply, but a blush rises in his cheeks and he looks like he’s a little overwhelmed with the whole thing. Zach stamps down the urge to jump in excitement, feeling like a little kid who’s birthday wish just came a little closer to coming true.

The two continue to stare at each other, Alex’s eyes twinkling and Justin’s blush growing. It seems to last for ages, in reality only goes on a few seconds but feels like hours to Zach in his inebriated, hopeful state. Finally, he gets impatient.

“Would you two just kiss already?”

This time Alex starts as Justin’s cheeks get impossibly redder. “Zach,” he hisses, “what the fuck is up with you?”

“What’s up with me,” Zach decides to inform them, “is that I’m so fed up with your fucking shit. Seriously, the sexual tension is killing me.”

He hangs his head in defeat as the two stare at him. Alex’s voice is tinged with disbelief. “Sexual tension?”

Zach groans, throwing his head back. The abrupt change is a bad idea, the room starting to sway as his head spins but he manages to push past it. This is much more important than the way his stomach’s starting to roll.

“Everyone can see it but you two. Do you idiots realise how many times I’ve just wanted to do this?”

He doesn’t see how his demonstration could go wrong. He brings his hands up to the back of their hands and drags them towards each other.

He almost collapses when they pull their arms away from him to wrap them around each other instead as their lips connect. It seems, while he’d been talking he hadn’t been paying enough attention to realise the two had started grinning at each other, apparently finally realising he was right– along with their constant, unfaltering sexual tension.

Zach stands in shock as they kiss softly, Justin’s arms winding around Alex’s waist and Alex’s hands lifting to tangle in Justin’s hair.

His lips pull into the widest grin possible. He fist pumps the air. He has the urge to look away, but can’t–this is a moment more beautiful than any scene in any movie he’s ever seen. If he wasn’t so manly (but he is), he might squeal. He definitely didn’t, though. Not externally, at least.

They pull away and look at each other with the softest smiles Zach has ever seen, and if he couldn’t handle it before, he doesn’t know why he thought it’d be easier now.

But it still is, he decides, because Justin looks unusually happy and Alex has never seemed as comfortable as he does in the jock’s arms and Zach can’t do anything but feel utter happiness for them.

He flings his arms back over their shoulders, almost making all three of them crash to the floor. “Finally!”

Alex is the one blushing, now, and Justin’s laughing, and they’re both bringing their arms back around his waist, keeping him on his feet. They start to lead him back out of the house and he frowns.

He tugs at their shoulders, whining. “Wait. We can’t leave, I have to tell Monty.”

Justin tightens his grip and they keep walking. “Monty will still be here in the morning. Besides, wouldn’t you rather not tell him and just let us start making out in front of him?”

Zach brightens at that.

Alex laughs at him, then suddenly seems to realise something. He asks just as they make it outside.

“Zach,” he says slowly, “did you and Monty steal our clothes?”

The tallest jock freezes. He tries to come up with a response, some kind of lie, an assurance of ‘what, no, we’d never do that’. But he is still drunk, and his mind blanks. The best he can do is carefully lift his arms off their shoulders, and run.

They look at each other before chasing after him, and he laughs loudly, calling over his shoulder.

“You can kill me, but I’ll still ship it.”


End file.
